The Pulpit Commentary — 1 John — Section 129

"Enter not into judgment with thy ~ervant; for before thee no man living is righteonB." 'l'wo things in connection with the day of judgment are likely to lead to fcnr. 1. The consciomness of our sins. No human being can staud before the great tribunnl nnd plead "Not guilty." In rela.tion to man we may be guiltless; that is possible. But in relation to the holy Gorl and his perfect Law, we have each sinneu, nnd brought ourselves into condemnation, and merited punishment. Hence the prospect of the day of judgment may well awaken our fear. 2. The omnisr,ience and holiness of the Judge. He knows our every sin. Even our sinful thoughts anrl feelings are manifest unto him. He has set our iniquities before him, our secret sins in the light of his countenance (Ps. xc. 8). And he cannot excuse any sin. Sin is the abominable thing which he hates (Jer. xliv. 4). He is" of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on iniquity" (Hab. i. 13). Who, then, can stand before him in that day? III. PERFE0TLOVE WILL BANISH BUCH FEARS AND INSPIRE HOLY CONFJDJ!,NCE. "Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness ia the day of judgment," etc. "Love" here is not merely our love to God, or our love to our neighbour, but the principle of love, or, as Ebrard expresses it, '' the love which subsists between God and us; thus that simple relation of love of which the apostle had spoken in ver. 12, and just now ac,ain in ver. 16." And its being perfected cannot mean that it is so fully developed a~ to be incapable of further increase or improvement. In that sense love will never be altoaether "made perfect with us." One meaning of" to be made perfect" is "to attain its e;d." And one of the designs of God is that love should inspire us with holy bold- ness in the day of judgment. "The confidence," says Alford, "which we shall have in that day, and which we have even now by anticipation of that day, is the perfection of our love; grounded on the consideration which follows;" viz. "Because as he is, even so are we in this world." 1. Perfect love expels servile fear. There is a reverent fear which increases as our love increases. "0 fear the Lord, ye his saints," etc. (Ps. xxxiv. 9); "Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord," etc. (Ps. cxv. 11, 13). But servile fear, the fear which hath torment, is incompatible with holy love. "There is no fear in love : but perfect love casteth out fear," etc. What countless fears agitate the hearts of those who are not in sympathy with God! Some men are dreading secular poverty; others, painful and lingering illness; others, death; others, judgment; others, God himself. Such fears agitate and distress souls; they have torment. Perfect love will expel each and all of these tormentors. It clothes our life and its experiences in new aspects, by enabling us to regard them in a different spirit. This love is of God ; it proceeds from him and returns to him, and it cannot dread him or his appointments in relation to us. In this way it banishes from the heart the dread of death and of the judgment. 2. Perfect love inspires holy confidence. It will impart "boldness in the day of judgment." Holy love is a most courageous thing. "Love is strong as death . . ·, . Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it." Since this relation of Jove subsists between God and us, and since God is what he is, viz. "love" (ver. 16) and•• light" (eh, i. 5), w,i can do no other than trust him, and even now look forward with confidence to the day of judgment. Perfect love not only expels servile fear, but inspires victorious trust in God. IV. 'fHE CONFIDENCE WHICH PERFECT LOVE INSPIRES IS WELL-GROUNDED. "Because as he is, even so are we in this world.n "God is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him;" and in a measure he is like unto God. Moreover, love is a transforming principle and power; and they who abide in love are ever growing into more complete likeness to God in Christ; and for this reason they may be well assured that in the day of judgmcnt they will be accepted of him. If we are in this relation of holy love, we have communion with our Lord and Saviour, he dwells in us, we dwell in him, and we may rejoice in the assurauce that, because we morally resemble him, he will not condemn us in that day.-W. J. Ver. 19.-God's love and ours. "\Ve love, because he first loved us." I. GOD LOVES, He is not an impassive, unemotional, passionless Beiug. From all eternity there was a tender, infinite, ineffable love between the Father and the Son, When the Scriptures represent God as having a heart, as pitying, sorrowing, repenting, loving, hating, there is 1\ truo meaning in the reprcsru tations. If we take the cor re-  THE FIRST EPISTLE GENEHAL OF JOHN. [on. 1v. 1-21,